My hydraulic press has been out of service for several months. After 26 years of service, the ram was leaking oil like mad and the pressure gauge had “given up the ghost”. A new Bonny Doon ram with gauge is quite expensive, but what good it to have an unusable press? Besides, I really wanted to use the press again so I “bit the bullet” and shelled out $380 plus shipping for a replacement. I’m confident this new ram will most likely outlast me! If you’ve read my recent blog posts, you know that I’ve been working on collections of polymer clay Matisse Inspired “Cutouts” earrings , which I absolutely love to make and wear, but I’ve wanted to add metal cutouts to the mix as well! Using a die and hydraulic press to cut out a shape is definitely faster and far less labor intensive than sawing the shape out by hand, plus you get consistent results when producing multiples. Below are my first sterling silver cutout shapes using the new ram with several of my Potter USA dies. It certainly is wonderful to have my press back in working order!
